[Introduced January 25, 2012; referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Infrastructure.]

____________

A BILL to amend and reenact §17A-10-1 and §17A-10-3 of the Code of
West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all relating to
classification of motor vehicles for purpose of registration;
changing the definition of “Class A” vehicles by increasing
the maximum weight of Class A to include certain vehicles now
classified as Class B; establishing the fee for those
reclassified vehicles; and defining “Class Farm Truck” as
“Class X”.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That §17A-10-1 and §17A-10-3 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:

ARTICLE 10. FEES FOR REGISTRATION, LICENSING, ETC.

§17A-10-1. Classification of vehicles for purpose of registration.

Vehicles subject to registration under the provisions of this
chapter shall be placed in the following classes for the purpose of
registration:

Class A. Motor vehicles of passenger type and trucks with a
gross weight of not more than eightten thousand pounds: Provided,That wherever the term “passenger vehicle” is used in this code,
this definition applies regardless of a reference to a specific
weight;

Class B. Motor vehicles designated as trucks with a gross
weight of more than eightten thousand pounds, truck tractors or
road tractors;

Class C. All trailers and semitrailers, except house trailers
and trailers or semitrailers designed to be drawn by Class A motor
vehicles and having a gross weight of less than two thousand
pounds;

Class G. Motorcycles and parking enforcement vehicles;

Class H. Motor vehicles operated regularly for the
transportation of persons for compensation under a certificate of
convenience and necessity or contract carrier permit issued by the
Public Service Commission;

Class J. Motor vehicles operated for transportation of
persons for compensation by common carriers, not running over a
regular route or between fixed termini;

Class M. Mobile equipment as defined in subdivision (oo),
section one, article one of this chapter;

Class R. House trailers;

Class T. Trailers or semitrailers of a type designed to be
drawn by Class A vehicles and having a gross weight of less than
two thousand pounds; and

Class X Farm Truck. Motor vehicles designated as trucks
having a minimum gross weight of more than eight thousand pounds
and a maximum gross weight of eighty thousand pounds, used
exclusively in the conduct of a farming business, engaged in the
production of agricultural products by means of: (a) The planting,
cultivation and harvesting of agricultural, horticultural,
vegetable or other products of the soil; or (b) the raising,
feeding and care of livestock, poultry, bees and dairy cattle. A
farm truck may be used only for the transportation of agricultural
products produced by the owner of the truck, for the transportation
of agricultural supplies used in the production or for private
passenger use.

The following registration fees for the classes indicated
shall be paid to the division for the registration of vehicles
subject to registration under this chapter when equipped with
pneumatic tires:

(a) Registration fees for the following classes shall be paid
to the division annually:

(1) Class A. -- The registration fee for all motor vehicles of
this class is $28.50: Provided, That the registration fees and any
other fees required by this chapter for Class A vehicles under the
optional biennial staggered registration system shall be multiplied
by two and paid biennially to the division.

No license fee may be charged for vehicles owned by churches,
or by trustees for churches, which are regularly used for
transporting parishioners to and from church services.
Notwithstanding the exemption, the certificate of registration and
license plates shall be obtained the same as other cards and plates
under this article.

(2) Class B. -- The registration fee for all motor vehicles of
this class is as follows:

(A) For declared gross weights of eightten thousand one
pounds to sixteen thousand pounds -- $28 plus $5 for each one
thousand pounds or fraction of one thousand pounds that the gross
weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds eight
thousand pounds.

(B) For declared gross weights greater than sixteen thousand
pounds, but less than fifty-five thousand pounds -- $78.50 plus $10
for each one thousand or fraction of one thousand pounds that the
gross weight of the vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds
sixteen thousand pounds.

(C) For declared gross weights of fifty-five thousand pounds
or more -- $737.50 plus $15.75 for each one thousand pounds or
fraction of one thousand pounds that the gross weight of the
vehicle or combination of vehicles exceeds fifty-five thousand
pounds.

(3) Class G. -- The registration fee for each motorcycle or
parking enforcement vehicle is $8: Provided, That the registration
fee and any other fees required by this chapter for Class G
vehicles shall be for at least one year and under an optional
biennial registration system the annual fee shall be multiplied by
two and paid biennially to the division.

(4) Class H. -- The registration fee for all vehicles for this
class operating entirely within the state is $5; and for vehicles
engaged in interstate transportation of persons, the registration
fee is the amount of the fees provided by this section for Class B,
reduced by the amount that the mileage of the vehicles operated in
states other than West Virginia bears to the total mileage operated
by the vehicles in all states under a formula to be established by
the Division of Motor Vehicles.

(5) Class J. -- The registration fee for all motor vehicles of
this class is $85. Ambulances and hearses used exclusively as
ambulances and hearses are exempt from the special fees set forth
in this section.

(6) Class M. -- The registration fee for all vehicles of this
class is $17.50.

(7) Class X farm truck. -- The registration fee for all motor
vehicles of this class is as follows:

(G) For farm trucks of declared gross weights of fifty-four
thousand one pounds to eighty thousand pounds -- $250: Provided,
That the provisions of subsection (a), section eight, article one,
chapter seventeen-e of this code do not apply if the vehicle
exceeds sixty-four thousand pounds and is a truck tractor or road
tractor.

(b) Registration fees for the following classes shall be paid
to the division for a maximum period of three years, or portion of
a year based on the number of years remaining in the three-year
period designated by the commissioner:

(1) Class R. -- The annual registration fee for all vehicles
of this class is $12.

(2) Class T. -- The annual registration fee for all vehicles
of this class is $8.

(c) The fees paid to the division for a multiyear registration
provided by this chapter shall be the same as the annual
registration fee established by this section and any other fee
required by this chapter multiplied by the number of years for
which the registration is issued.

(d) The registration fee for all Class C vehicles is $50. On
or before July 1, 2000, allAll Class C trailers shall be
registered for the duration of the owner’s interest in the trailer
and do not expire until either sold or otherwise permanently
removed from the service of the owner: Provided, That a registrant
may transfer a Class C registration plate from a trailer owned less
than thirty days to another Class C trailer titled in the name of
the registrant upon payment of the transfer fee prescribed in
section ten of this article.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to expand the definition of
Class A vehicles to include larger pickup type trucks registered at
more then 8,000 pounds but less than 10,001 pounds. This change
would allow these vehicles to display special license plates and
allow sheriffs to renew these registrations in their offices. The
bill also designates class farm trucks as class X.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.